Kulap
Encyclopedia
Kulap are small funerary sculptures produced in the Punam region of southern New Ireland
in Papua New Guinea
. They were believed to contain the soul
of the deceased person they were meant to represent, and would be ritually smashed once their usefulness was outlived, although in more recent years some have been sold to Westerners. Kulap are carved from chalk
limestone
, native to the region, and may sometimes be painted; they are expressly produced by artisans from the Rossel Mountains
. They may represent either men or women.
New Ireland (island)
New Ireland is a large island in Papua New Guinea, approximately 7,404 km² in area. It is the largest island of the New Ireland Province, lying northeast of the island of New Britain. Both islands are part of the Bismarck Archipelago, named after Otto von Bismarck, and they are separated by...
in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
. They were believed to contain the soul
Soul
A soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
of the deceased person they were meant to represent, and would be ritually smashed once their usefulness was outlived, although in more recent years some have been sold to Westerners. Kulap are carved from chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, native to the region, and may sometimes be painted; they are expressly produced by artisans from the Rossel Mountains
Rossel Mountains
The Rossel Mountains are a range of mountains on the island of New Ireland, part of Papua New Guinea. They are home to deposits of chalk limestone, from which the kulap figures native to the island are crafted.-Reference:*...
. They may represent either men or women.